Free school lunches will cover approximately 3 million pupils starting in September
This was announced by Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko.
As part of the school meal reform in Ukraine, more than 2 million children already receive free hot meals.
From September 2026, this approach is planned to be extended to the whole country. The programme is expected to cover around 3 million pupils.
Yulia Svyrydenko stated that on International School Meals Day, it is important to remember that this reform supports communities at all levels.
According to her, it is not only about children's health, but also about stimulating local production and economic development.
At the same time, preparations are underway to expand the programme.
In particular, the state budget provides for UAH 1 billion for the modernisation of school canteens.
A new model of food organisation is being developed separately.
In the communities of Zaporizhzhia, Vinnytsia, Kyiv, Lviv and Sumy regions, factory kitchens are being created to provide centralised preparation of thousands of meals every day for schools.
In addition, modern culinary hubs are being opened at vocational and technical education institutions to train and upgrade the skills of chefs.
According to the Prime Minister, almost 9,500 specialists have already undergone the relevant training.
More than 3,000 of them have upgraded their qualifications over the past year.
